I really enjoyed this book. It kept me guessing and, despite it being 4th in a series I haven’t read it was easy to get into - and difficult to put down. A recommended read.

I was in two minds about this book as I had been wanting to read a mystery and the last couple of UK based ones I have found boring and couldn't keep my attention but figured since this was about a teen it would be interesting. There were parts of this book that I found myself a bit confused about with Detective Natalie Ward's family which I assume was referenced in previous books but overall this book can be read as a standalone. The book starts with Roxy heading out to her friends for a sleepover, during the night though there is a fire and Roxy's body is found. The people who own the house though they are swearing black and blue that they don't know Roxy, so how did she end up in their house dead. Roxy's family is a mixed bunch of characters and the majority of the characters in The Sleepover are what you could imagine the lower class English to be like, the ones who live in the poorer estates. Just as Natalie is finally getting a lead, more people connected to Roxy are dying and if she isn't careful then there could be two more on the murder list - Tucker and Ellie. Who is killing everyone and why? How is everyone connected? As there are a lot of characters in the book, at times the plot does become a bit convoluted but you do catch up in places. I have to admit when the person behind the arson was revealed, I have to admit I was a little disappointed but overall The Sleepover was a good UK mystery read.

I am thoroughly enjoying this series. A girl is found in a house fire. But as usual it is all a lot more complicated than it seems!
And then you throw in the problems at home for the boss, an unemployed gambling husband and two teenagers it just gets denser.
I am enjoying the development of these characters. The main stories are always complex and multi layered. Another excellent addition. I am looking forward to the next title.

This book!!! What a wild and crazy story. I couldn't put it down. So well written and TAUT!!! thank you to Net Galley and the publisher.

This is the fourth book in the series featuring Detective Natalie Ward. A female body is found in a burned out house and medical records identify her as Roxy, a fourteen year old girl. When Natalie informs Cathy, her mother, of her death, she had thought that Roxy was having a sleepover at her friend Ellie’s house and has no idea why Roxy was there. The house where she was found is in an affluent area at the other end of town and the two brothers, who are owners of a nightclub, deny knowing the girl and why she was in the house. When Natalie and her team start their investigations they become very suspicious of Roxy’s family. Then Cathy goes missing and when her body is found , rather than it being suicide it looks like she was murdered. Natalie has numerous suspects but very little evidence and is convinced that everyone is lying and withholding information. Can she and her team find the killer before they kill again? We also find that Natalie’s marriage is under pressure. Her husband David is still battling with his gambling addiction and cannot find a job. Her son Josh is causing her problems with his strange behaviour and her daughter Leigh,who ran away from home, is struggling too. This book was another great read in the series, with a brilliant plot and gave me a real challenge to discover who the killer was. I can’t wait for book number five in this series. A highly recommended read.
Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

#TheSleepover #NetGalley Carol Wyer is fast becoming one of my favourite crime writers and the Natalie Ward series is excellent. This is the fourth in the series and although is perfectly capable of being read as a standalone, it does help to have some background on the main players especially Natalie and her team. Once you pick up one of Carol's books, you will be hard pushed tp put it down and this one is no exception. I love the fact that there is so much action going on instead of dreary pages of description. The storyline keeps you on your toes and keeps you guessing right until the end which I love. The side story regarding Natalie's personal life and her relationship with her gamble of a husband and her children really helps to develop her character. I can't wait for the next one in this series - The Blossom Twins - which I am going to read next! A cracking 5 stars!

From my blog: Always With a Book:

This is the fourth book in Carol Wyer's Detective Natalie Ward series, and each book has been fantastic...one more addicting and thrilling than the previous one! I just love the series that Carol Wyer gives us - I was a huge fan of her DI Robyn Carter series and I am loving this one just as much. Carol definitely knows how to write a strong female lead and I absolutely love that!!!

One of my favorite aspects of this series is that we get such an intimate look at both sides of the characters lives - both on the job and at home. Natalie is still dealing with issues on the home front - things with her husband David have not improved and now it looks like there are some issues with her son, which is causing even more friction between her and David. I did like that there was a small development at the end of the book that might finally shake things up...and I can't wait to see how that plays out in the next book.

The case that the team is involved in is all centered around secrets and lies. And incidentally it happens to mirror what is going on in Natalie's life. This isn't the first time this has happened, but it does hit home that what Natalie does at work isn't all that far removed from what she deals with on a regular basis on the home front.

Nothing is straightforward with this case and it really keeps the team spinning their wheels trying to get to the bottom of things. The different threads that spin out from this one incident seem to be unrelated but yet are they? No one is being truthful with Natalie and her team and she wants to know why. What is it that everyone seems to be hiding?

I love that this book kept me guessing and on my toes the entire time. This is why I love reading police procedurals. They make me think. And when I get to the end to that final reveal...I am usually shocked! And I love that...I love when I can't figure it out. Or if I do happen to, I love finding out the why - what was their motivation, because I usually don't know that part.

The books in this series can all be read as stand-alones, but I think they work so much better if you read the books in order. Each book has a different case but the character development builds for all the main characters and that is what really makes this series so strong. I cannot wait to read the next book in this series, The Blossom Twins, which is out in December...these books are so addicting and binge-worthy. They keep you on the edge of your seat as you try to figure out just what is going on.

When fourteen year old Roxy says she's going to a sleepover at her best friend's house, her mother, Cathy, doesn't think twice about it. But when Roxy's body is found the next day in a house across town, it's clear that she wasn't telling the truth about where she was going, or who was going there with. 

Detective Natalie Ward is suspicious - even more so when she discovers that Roxy recently presented at her local hospital with suspicious injuries. 

But no-one will talk, and when Cathy also goes missing, it seems there are more questions than Natalie ever imagined. With Ellie refusing to disclose what she knows about the night Roxy died, it's a race against time for Natalie to find out who really killed Roxy - and why. 

I really enjoy a police procedural, and this one was well written, fast paced, and cleverly plotted. The characters are realistically and sympathetically drawn, and I enjoyed how the story gradually unravelled. All the lies and deception got frustrating at times, but I liked that as it made the reader empathise with how the police must be feeling, and I also liked that you were given real glimpses into Natalie's personal life, which made her a more relatable and well-rounded character. 

Very well plotted, and I thought the ending was well done and satisfying. I look forward to reading more from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley, who provided me with a free ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

*5 Stars*

Copy kindly received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Sometimes revenge can be sweet, and other times it can be deadly. Being a detective can be hard on a family, especially when you're a female and bread winner for your family. This was an interesting read with interesting characters, and I would recommend.

This is the fourth book in the excellent Natalie Ward series and is a faboulous read. I was gripped right from the beginning, just couldn't put it down. The plot is great is young girl is found dead in a house fire, but why was she there. I highly recommend this book and the whole series. Looking forward to book five now.

I received a free e-copy of The Sleepover (Detective Natalie Ward #4) by Carol Wyer from NetGalley for my honest review.

Another amazing and mysterious read by Carol Wyer. She has become one of my favorite authors and I absolutely love this series.

Roxy (A 14 year old girl) and her mom, Cathy had a fight but patched things up afterwards. Roxy is allowed to go to a sleepover that she had planned at her best friend, Ellie's house. The next morning, however, Roxy is found murdered clear across town in a very unusual place.

Detective Natalie Ward and her team are called on the case to investigate. Then there is a second murder. This time the victim is Cathy, Roxy's mom and she is found dead near the same spot her daughter's body was found.

It is up to Detective Natalie Ward and her team to solve the case and sort through all the lies and secrets that come up. A must read series!

The fourth book in the Detective Natalie Ward series but the first I have read. When Roxy argues with her mother before leaving to sleepover at her friends house little does her mother realise that would be the last tome she sees her daughter alive.
A great ‘who done it’ with a strong female lead whom has a troubled past of her own. I will definitely be hunting down the first three books in this series

I really enjoy Detective Natalie Ward, she struggles with her work/life balance as do many police officers, and her husband needs to be tossed out on his backside very soon, I think she's put up with more than enough of his behaviour. I like the way she cares about her kids and how she struggles to maintain a relationship with them now they are teenagers and think they know best. This newest case once again makes Natalie realise how vulnerable her children are in today's world, especially being the age they are. There are plenty of twists and red-herrings in this newest case, with things seeming to snowball out of control for whoever is committing these crimes. The police procedures seem very well researched and I like the fact that things often get worse before they find the perpetrator, nothing is tied up quickly and easily. I enjoyed reuniting with Natalie's team and seeing how they are all getting along. I look forward to Natalie Ward's next case.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with a digital copy of this novel in return for an honest review.

Sometimes when an author gets a few books into a series it can start to feel stale. That is definitely NOT the case here! Detective Natalie Ward and her unit remain as sharp as ever. While she and her co-workers try to uncover why a young girl died in a mysterious fire, their personal lives come into play and make an impact on their investigation. I love the way this author seamlessly weaves the professional and personal aspects together to create a tight plot that had me turning pages long into the night. Another great installment to the series. For a full review, please visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks Fiction Reviews. Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and the author for a complimentary, pre-release digital ARC of the book.

I thought that this book was superb!! I am so glad I was introduced to this author as she is a go to author for me and I know with her I will get an excellent story!

This series for me is getting better and better with each book released and it is really going from strength to strength, the plot for this one was so well woven it had me guessing for a long time, I loved the twists and turns that the author added in and the pace of the story was excellent – the book was one that had me well and truly gripped and the ending is spot on for the simply brilliant – I love how it all came together at the end, very, very good!!

I joined the series with the first book when it was very first released and I have really enjoyed following the team as they have developed and I think that Natalie, DI Ward is a fantastic character too – I love her personality, she is well grounded, personable and realistic!

It is 5 stars from me for this one, I thought it was a brilliant story, fine to read as a standalone to if you don’t fancy reading the previous books in the series.

The fourth book in the series of Detective Natalie Ward. Saying that this book grips you from the beginning is an understatement. What I love about Wyer’s books is the attention to detail she uses without boring you. Everything she writes has a meaning in the end and the plot twists so strategically placed are genius!

Patiently waiting for the next in this series!

Carol Wyer Has Done It Again!I

Sleepover is the fourth book in the Natalie Ward detective series and it was the best and I hope Carol Wyer continues to write more in this series!

The story surrounds a missing 14 year old girl from a lower income family and the remains of a body found in a mansion that had mysteriously burned down on the other side of town. There are many twists within this story and many shady characters that the police have to keep interviewing over and over because there are so many lies being told and facts being held back from even friends and family of the deceased. When another body turns up a few days later and the detectives are pulling out their hair trying to to make sense of the connection between the two people. On top.of all the work quandaries, Natalie is dealing with personal problems that are becoming insurmountable to handle while she is working these cases. Then a suspicious suicide occurs that has connections to these cases and the writer takes you on a terrific rollercoaster ride of Who, What When and Where and Why.I

I love this series and just want more and more. Keeping my fingers crossed that this will not be the final book because Natalie is such a complex and interesting character that there are endless stories that can be woven around her and her team of detectives. There is so much mystery and drama within this book that it is very hard to figure out who the killer or killers are. This book had great storytelling and was very well-written leaving me wanting more mysteries from this author.

I want to thank the publisher Bookouture and Netgalley for allowing me the opportunity of reading this marvelous book!

I highly recommend this book and series by Carol Ayer and have given a rating of 4 Marvelous 🌟🌟🌟🌟 Stars!!

This was a very good detective story, and loved the way they solved the murders.
A girl was found in a house which was burnt down, what was she doing in the house, how did she get in the house was locked.
The family were devastated to hear of Roxys death. She had three brothers, a mother and a step father
The family lived in a shabby home.
All the boys were rough and got up to who knows what, except one who was in the army.
The police investigated all the family and friends, then the mother died. The stepfather was very upset, as was the. Boys.
The detectives then had to solve the murders, and then another.boy died.
It was a very exciting book which I enjoyed.
Just wish I had read other books in the series.

Carol Wyer is back with the forth book in the Detective Natalie Ward series and she sure has hell doesn’t disappoint with yet another addictive page turner.

I started this thinking I’ll just read a couple of chapters before I go to bed. Then before I knew it I had demolished half of the book but I was straight back into it with just a few hours sleep.

The story starts off with a bang when a body is pulled out of a house fire and Natalie is on the case to investigate who the body is and how the fire started. It doesn’t take long for the body to be identified and I found myself going through the emotions when Natalie breaks the news to the teenagers Mother. Having kids myself this is the unthinkable but then the author puts a spin on things and it turns out that the Teenager Roxy wasn’t meant to be at that house. She was meant to be at a friends sleepover. Why was she not at the sleepover? and who started the fire? is the question.

The author weaves a story that pulls you in different directions, keeping you guessing until the very end. This book is just genius, I bloody loved it.

Carol Wyer is without a doubt up there with Angela Marsons. If you are looking for an addictive page turner then this is the book for you I cannot recommend it enough giving it all the stars.

Thank you to Kim Nash at Bookouture for a copy and for the blog tour invite.

So I haven’t read the rest of the series but I want to now after reading this! This was such an intriguing read with so many twists! It felt very real throughout and I loved the writing style. I liked the personal aspect of this story and how it switched back between her detective life and her real life. I thought I had the case figured out a few time but they kept throwing in new characters and new suspects. Highlight recommend this one!